And with this posting, gentle readers, the nifty date-to-day correspondence disintegrates.
Every year, I customarily ask for a reduction on my credit card's APR, and every year I get it. Until now. I called US Bank with this routine question for my Visa card, only to learn that my interest rate is "already quite low for a rewards card," but maybe if I check back again in a few months they might lower it. I don't like that qualification -- for a rewards card -- and I don't understand why November might be a better moment than August. But the credit industry's inner workings and public justifications are more obscure to me than any of the literary theory gems I've read in grad school. Or perhaps not, on second thought. Bottom line: They want my money, and there's nothing to stop them from asking for it.
(At the same time, I never carry a balance, so the interest rate is more preventive than necessary. Does that confirm beyond the shadow of any doubt that I'm a virgo?)(At the same same time, just because they refused my request doesn't mean they won't be amenable to yours. Seriously -- try calling. In a few years, I've dropped mine from 15 percent to 10! Just a friendly tip.)
Gained: Today, nothing. This week, help for a strapped, and trapped, homeseller. Remember that friend of a friend of a friend who's struggling to sell his house in a chaotic Eastern European capital? Well, I asked my agent acquaintance if she'd be willing to work with him, and she said yes!
